One of 2018’s biggest hyped teams, it was a total disaster. Sasha Kljestan looked a shadow of what he was in Jersey. Their defense conceded the league worst 72, and their offense scored only 43 for the 2nd-worst in the league.
While there was promise in Yoshi Yotun, he’s now left, and their new signings aren’t particularly inspiring outside of Nani. Orlando’s best hope is that James O’Conner with a full preseason will instill a sense of price and ferocity that will get their offensive weapons playing to their full potential and have the team playing above the sum of their parts.
Tactics & Key Players
O’Conner is probably laying a 3-5-2, although sometime you may see 4 in the back.
Nani is the big offseason signing, and they’ll need production from the wing to set up the opportunities for Dom Dwyer. Sacha Kljestan was the most disappointing player in the league, but in preseason has looked much closer to 2017 Sacha than 2018 Sacha.
Notable Changes
Nani is this big signing, but Joe Bendik is now out. Orlando fans expect former Louisville City keeper Greg Ranjitsingh to take over between the sticks, although the team has also signed MLS veteran Brian Rowe. They also lost El-Munir to a trade.
Fantasy Expectations
In the beginning, you need a team that’s cheap that’s playing above expectations to fill out your roster. Orlando has had a very good preseason, with even their B team decimating a starting lineup from the Revs 6-2. Granted, that was at home but if Orlando’s offensive pieces can become dangerous at home that’s huge for fantasy. A defensive threat going forward may help, but I’m not seeing much here. Best to hope for is that Ranjustigh or the starter is under priced and therefore valuable for keeperoos early in the season.
Potential Starting XI
Thanks to @Rays1299 and @Graham_FL for helping with the lineup